The present invention relates generally to light display devices and more particularly to a light display system which forms an image when rotated.
Moving objects, such as the wheels of a bicycle, car or other vehicle, inherently attract the attention of the eye because of their motion. A message or design on the moving object which is perceptible to those in a fixed reference frame would call attention to itself. It is known to produce an image on a wheel which appears stationary to persons in a fixed reference frame. An example is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,848, which uses reflected light on a wheel cover to form what appears to be a fixed image on the wheel. The cover is formed with multiple (e.g., 4) angularly spaced images which are permanently formed on the cover. The images are formed so that they reflect light only in a predetermined direction. Thus, the images are visible to a person in a certain location when the image is in a certain rotational position. As a result, an image which appears fixed (relative to the rotation of the wheel) is formed. The appearance of the fixed image is a result of the well known "after image" effect in which the brain will fill in the time gaps between the successive appearances of the image when those time gaps become sufficiently small, so that the image is perceived as constant and fixed.
It is thus known to employ reflectors to create a fixed image on a rotating object. However, the image which is formed is not well-defined, and there is no flexibility to change the image without replacing the entire cover. The image is not well-defined because the entire image is displayed at each quarter rotation of the wheel. Thus, a relatively blurry image is produced. The image displayed on the known devices cannot be readily changed by the user because the image is permanently imprinted on the device. Further, there is no possibility for creating an image which appears to move when viewed in a fixed reference frame.